The Sprocket Geordie Chapter #9721
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THE SPROCKET 2021, summer GEORDIE CHAPTER #9721 sponsoring dealer:Gateshead Harley-Davidson Welcome to the summer edition of The Sprocket What's in this issue: Barry says ... Letter from the Editor Head Road Captain Merchandise Officer Historian - all our yesteryears! Newbie Ride Activities and Events Ladies of Harley 2021, summer Opus Focus Indigestion Challenge Heart ‘n’ Soul Rally Seasoned campaigners … ! Snowdonia Wild Hogs Florida tales Pizza or pasta ... HAMC Poker Run Blast from the Past Geordie Chapter website Unity Ride Wordsearch Last words Thanks to Chris Neal for the cover photo! THE SPROCKET GEORDIE CHAPTER #9721 The Sprocket 2021, summer Barry says … Hello everyone, welcome to the second edition of our newsletter for 2021! When I sit back and think about the Chapter, I often think about the past, the great times I have experienced with you all – both on the road and at social events – and then I look forward and wonder what the future will hold for us all. My priority has always been you, our members, because without you this Chapter would not exist. I still get excited that through these difficult times we are still managing to attract new members into our group. As I write this I’m pleased to say that number is 27. That alone tells me we are still heading in the right direction. The camaraderie in our Chapter is on a very high level and that keeps me happy! Like I said in the previous newsletter, 2020 and the first part of 2021 has been the most challenging for me and the Committee but we can at last, I hope, finally see some sort of easing with the restrictions that we have to follow. However, we must still continue to act in a responsible manner to limit and stem the spread of this virus within our Chapter and our H.O.G. community. We are now beginning to see some of the hard work that has gone on in the background, with various events taking place, and (always a pleasing sight for me) the beginning of the New Members’ rides. I am hopeful that our next Chapter meeting in July will be held back at Nissan and as it’s our first for a long time you know what that means … pie and peas!! ;-) I’m very hopeful that the Heart ‘n’ Soul rally will be able to go ahead as the restrictions are lifted. Trying to satisfy North Tyneside Council has been a horrendous task for both me and Dawn but, deep down, I can appreciate their concerns. Your safety and the safety of all those attending is paramount. I hope you are enjoying taking part in the A to Z Challenge and taking those photos at the various locations. I would like you to take the time to get involved with the Great Relay 21 Unity ride that our Chapter has been so heavily involved in. The date for our involvement on the Unity Ride begins on Friday, 13 August. We will meet up with Aire Valley Chapter – we are planning a photo shoot at the Angel of the North before the official hand over of the baton and Pan America bikes at Gateshead Harley- Davidson. On Saturday, 14 August, we head up to Edinburgh Harley-Davidson meeting up with Dunedin Chapter. There will be more details to follow. Whatever you do, make the rest of 2021 one to remember! Stay safe everyone. Barry NB: all events listed in The Sprocket may change due to ongoing restrictions – we’ll keep in touch, as far as possible. 1 The Sprocket 2021, summer Letter from the Editor I’m very pleased that the first edition of The Sprocket was well received across Geordie Chapter. I really enjoyed doing it and I think we got a good mix of articles, features and pictures in. In fact, I liked it so much, I decided to do another one: here’s your summer edition! Unfortunately, Monday won't bring about the end to COVID- 19 lockdown restrictions that we’ve all been looking forward to. However, my wife and I have been scooting about on our trike as earlier restrictions have been lifted and we have enjoyed an outside pint or two at our local, The Lochside, when we've got back from our travels. I hope that you’ve all enjoyed something similar wherever you are. Fingers crossed that there will be no resurgence of the pandemic and we can all get back to normal – maybe some of us will have a new normal. It’s great to see pictures of everyone’s outings, ride-outs and bimbles on Facebook – if anyone would like to share these with me, I’ll happily get them into The Sprocket for everyone to read. I know that quite a number of Chapter members don’t use Facebook, so this is a good way of spreading our stories and pictures. We’ve already got some great stories in this edition! I've also been sending out a number of emails recently, especially with content from Jimmy and Simon, so that we reach as many people as possible with our messages. It looks like Harley-Davidson has been very busy getting things moving with the Pan-America bike. I know that a number of our Road Crew went down to Dunston to have a look at it recently when it landed for a sneak preview. It sounds like opinions vary on its look. You can follow the progress of the Unity Ride, which features the Pan-America bike – there are more details of the ride in this issue. I had an operation on my foot at the beginning of May, which means no triking for me for a couple of months. Hopefully, I’ll be able to join some of the rides planned for late July – looking forward to it! COVID-dependent, of course. There’s something planned for every weekend in July! If you have something and would like to see it in print, drop me a line: [email protected]. Comments are always welcome. I hope to see you all soon. Cheers, Robin 2 The Sprocket 2021, summer Other Photo 1 3 The Sprocket 2021, summer Head Road Captain If you haven’t already blown off the COVID cobwebs, here is the perfect chance to do just that. On Sunday 27 June, we host our first official Chapter ride-out of 2021. The ride is led and marshalled by the Geordie Chapter Road Crew. Our destination is Hawick. (TD9 9LF) The ride will leave from Seaton Burn Services (NE13 6BP) at 10.30 am prompt. Please arrive in plenty of time to refuel, go to the toilet and have a coffee before ride briefing at 10.10 am. Please note: H.O.G. rules state that anyone not attending the briefing should not attend the ride (this rule applies to all official chapter rides). After we leave Seaton Burn, we pass through Ponteland and head up the A696, then A68 to Carter Bar. Just after Carter Bar, we take the A6088 toward Hawick. Here, we will have a lunch break with plenty of time to re-fuel, if required. We will decide the actual duration of the stop in Hawick on the day. After our break, we head out of Hawick towards Bonchester Bridge where we turn for Kielder via Saughtree. We then head on through Bellingham and Wark to Chollerford, where we pick up the Military Road to the ride end point at Heddon on the Wall (NE15 OBQ). There is another opportunity to re-fuel here before your journey home. Summary: Seaton Burn to Hawick 64 miles. Hawick to Heddon 66 miles. Total ride mileage is 130 miles. The Road Crew has done several reccies for this ride: there is some fantastic scenery and some great riding roads. Hope to see you all there. James Merchandise Officer Hi everyone! Now that lockdown restrictions are hopefully being lifted and ride-outs hopefully going ahead, I will be at Gateshead Harley-Davidson most Saturdays with our fabulous Geordie Chapter merchandise. I have loads of H.O.G. and GC items for you all to spend your hard-earned cash on – I also have a huge range of personalised items, such as hoodies and patches. Just let me know what you want and I’ll see about getting it for you. See you all soon. Lyn 4 The Sprocket 2021, summer Historian – all our yesteryears! It was in 1903 that Mr Harley and the Davidson brothers united to create a business that has survived for more than 115 years. No other company has had such a long and uninterrupted motorcycle production run. In 1983, the company launched the Harley Owners Group. Following the establishment of H.O.G., local chapters grew in conjunction with local Harley-Davidson dealerships. Currently, there are about 1,400 official HOG chapters around the world. In 1997, the Geordie Chapter was formed, supported by Just Harleys in Morpeth, and the Chapter began its journey. At that time the most popular Harleys were: • Fat Boy £8,773 • Springer Softail £8,607 • Road King £9,414 • Dyna Low Rider £8,389 • Sportster £3,187 (XLH 883) to £4,975 (XL 1200S) Other major events of the time included: • The Roslin Institute in Edinburgh successfully cloned a sheep • Deep Blue, the chess-playing computer, beat the chess world champion Garry Kasparov • J. K. Rowling published the first book in the Harry Potter series • Tony Blair becomes UK Prime minister • Woolworths closes its remaining stores after 100 years of trading • Lady Diana was killed in a car accident in Paris On the sporting front: • Mike Tyson bites Evander Holyfield's ear during a match and is suspended from boxing • At the end of the 96/97 football season, Manchester United are champions with Newcastle united in second place.